For its sixth launch of the year, and the third Ariane 5 mission in 2017 from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana, Arianespace will orbit two satellites: ViaSat-2 for ViaSat Inc.; and EUTELSAT 172B for Eutelsat.

This mission – the 237th overall by an Ariane launcher – will mark a new all-time Arianespace record for a total payload weight orbited: 10,865 kg., including a net mass at liftoff of 9,969 kg. for the two satellites.

ViaSat-2 and EUTELSAT 172B are the 558th and 559th satellites to be launched by Arianespace.

With this 289th mission by the Arianespace family of launchers (Ariane 5, Soyuz and Vega), Arianespace is serving global connectivity on Earth.

The launch will be from Ariane Launch Complex No. 3 (ELA 3) in Kourou, French Guiana.

The Launch Readiness Review (LRR) will take place on Tuesday, May 30, 2017 in Kourou, to authorize the start of operations for the final countdown.

ViaSat-2 is the first ViaSat satellite to be launched by Arianespace.

ViaSat Inc., a new customer for Arianespace and its Ariane 5 launch vehicle, provides international communities with broadband internet connectivity, accessible on land, at sea and in the air, at competitive rates in relation to other satellite or terrestrial services.

The ViaSat-2 satellite system should bring considerable improvements in terms of speed, lower costs and extended broadband coverage within its footprint, as well as along the main aeronautical and maritime routes linking North America and Europe (Atlantic Ocean).

ViaSat-2 will also provide nearly twice the capacity offered by previous generations of ViaSat satellites, along with seven times as much coverage.

Positioned at 70° West, ViaSat-2 will provide throughput of approximately 300 Gbps in Ka-band over its coverage zone, which includes North and Central America, plus the Caribbean, northern South America, and aeronautical and maritime routes in the Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe.

ViaSat-2 was built by Boeing in El Segundo, California, using a 702HP platform.

EUTELSAT 172B will be the 32nd satellite launched by Arianespace for Eutelsat. Both companies have worked side-by-side since 1983, when Arianespace launched the Eutelsat-1 F1 satellite. Including this upcoming launch, more than half of Eutelsat’s satellites will have been orbited by Arianespace.

Eutelsat is one of the world’s leading and most experienced operators of communications satellites. The company provides capacity on 39 satellites to clients that include broadcasters and broadcasting associations; pay-TV operators; video, data and Internet service providers; enterprises and government agencies.

EUTELSAT 172B will deliver increased capacity for fast-growing applications that include in-flight and maritime connectivity, cellular backhaul, corporate networks, video distribution and government services. It will be located at 172° East, a key neighborhood providing exceptional Asia-Pacific reach over land and sea, from Alaska to Australia.

EUTELSAT 172B is the first all-electric telecommunications satellite built in Europe. This key enabling technology has been implemented by Airbus in Toulouse, using the new all-electric Eurostar E3000 EOR (Electric Orbit Raising) platform.

To watch a live, high-speed online transmission of the launch (including commentary from the launch site in French and Eng-lish), go to arianespace.com on June 1, 2017 starting 15 minutes before liftoff.

You also can follow the launch live on your iPhone or iPad (the Arianespace HD app is free).

Arianespace Flight VA237: ViaSat-2 and EUTELSAT 172B Published on 29 May 2017

Liftoff is planned on Thursday, June 1, 2017 as early as possible within the following launch window:

- Between 4:45 p.m. and 5:45 p.m., Carlsbad, California,- Between 7:45 p.m. and 8:45 p.m., Washington, D.C. time- Between 8:45 p.m. and 9:45 p.m., Kourou, in French Guiana- Between 23:45 and 00:45, Universal Time (UTC) during the night of June 1 to June 2- Between 01:45 p.m. and 2:45 p.m., Paris time on June 2.

Ariane 5 May 30, 2017Arianespace’s Ariane 5 is “go” for liftoff on June 1 with the ViaSat-2 and EUTELSAT 172B satellite passengers

The sixth Arianespace launch of 2017 is approved for liftoff on June 1 from the Spaceport in French Guiana, with its dual-satellite payload of ViaSat-2 and EUTELSAT 172B.

The authorization for this week’s mission – designated Flight VA237 in Arianespace’s launcher family numbering system – followed today’s Launch Readiness Review, which confirmed the “go” status for Ariane 5, its two spacecraft passengers, the Spaceport infrastructure and the network of tracking stations.

Flight VA237’s Ariane 5 is now ready for rollout from the Final Assembly Building, where ViaSat-2 and EUTELSAT 172B were integrated on the launcher, to the Spaceport’s ELA-3 launch zone.

Liftoff will commence as soon as possible in a one-hour launch window that opens at 8:45 p.m. in French Guiana (between 23:45 and 00:45 Universal Time, during the night of June 1 to June 2).

ViaSat-2 and EUTELSAT 172B will be deployed into geostationary transfer orbit on a mission lasting just under 42 minutes.

Released first will be ViaSat-2, which is expected to bring considerable improvements in terms of speed, lower costs and extended broadband coverage within its footprint, which includes North and Central America, plus the Caribbean, northern South America, and the aeronautical and maritime routes in the Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe. As a global broadband services and technology company, ViaSat operates from corporate headquarters in Carlsbad, California.

ViaSat-2 was built by Boeing in El Segundo, California, using a 702HP platform, and will be positioned at 70 deg. West.

EUTELSAT 172B’s deployment by Ariane 5 will complete Arianespace’s Flight VA237. Operating at an orbital position of 172 deg. East for Asia-Pacific reach over land and sea from Alaska to Australia, the relay platform will deliver increased capacity for fast-growing applications that include in-flight and maritime connectivity, cellular backhaul, corporate networks, video distribution and government services. This satellite will join the fleet of Paris-based Eutelsat, a leading satellite operator in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Using the new all-electric Eurostar E3000 EOR (Electric Orbit Raising) platform assembled by Airbus in Toulouse, France, EUTELSAT 172B is the initial all-electric telecommunications satellite built in Europe – and the first of its type orbited by Ariane 5.

Flight VA237 maintains Arianespace’s busy launch schedule in 2017, during which the company is targeting a total of 12 flights using its heavy-lift Ariane 5, medium-lift Soyuz and lightweight Vega vehicles. The five missions already performed this year have utilized two Ariane 5s, two Soyuz launchers and one Vega.

Flight VA237’s dual payload is integrated in the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building, with EUTELSAT 172B positioned atop Ariane 5’s core stages (at left), followed by the lowering of the “upper composite,” consisting of ViaSat-2 and the SYLDA dispenser system, protected by the launcher’s payload fairing.